4 candidates running for 2 Juneau School Board seats

There are four candidates for two school board seats this year.

Juneau School Board members Lisa Worl and Barbara Thurston chose not to seek re-election. The two candidates who receive the most votes Oct. 4 will win three-year terms.

The Juneau School Board oversees the school district’s $80-plus million annual operating budget and more than 600 employees.

This year’s candidates are Kevin Allen, Dan DeBartolo, Jason Hart and Steve Whitney.

Kevin Allen graduated from Thunder Mountain High School in May. He already sat on the school board as a student representative; he was a member of the Alaska Association of Student Governments and Model United Nations. He believes the school board needs the perspective of a recent student and he wants the Juneau School District to continue efforts to bring Alaska Native culture into education. He’s Tlingit and Athabascan.

Dan DeBartolo is the administrative services director for the Alaska Department of Revenue. In a written statement, he touted his experience building efficiencies inside the state agency as an example of how he would support the school district’s mission at a time of budget uncertainty

Jason Hart lost the 2015 race for school board. Hart is also worried about the State of Alaska’s fiscal dilemma. He stresses that he will take a “common sense approach” to budget questions.

Hart is a contract administrator for Hecla Mining Co. He has a son starting fifth grade this year. DeBartolo also has a daughter starting first grade.

Steve Whitney could not be reached for comment on his campaign.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified one of the candidates. Dan DeBartolo is running for school board, not David DeBartolo.

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